CBG won’t disappoint customers — MD
Consolidated Bank Ghana (CBG) has assured the financial markets that customers and investors, individuals and institutions, are being paid promptly when their deposits and investments mature.
The Managing Director of the bank, Mr Daniel Addo, said the task the bank took on was huge but management and staff had been able to surmount the challenges and regained the confidence of customers.
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“It is a huge task but we have executed our mandate professionally and in the best interest of our stakeholders.
Inevitably this has involved balancing competing needs while ensuring that no stakeholder group is unduly disadvantaged”.
While admitting that there were initial challenges with customer’s access to their investments and deposits after the establishment of the bank, he was quick to add that those challenges had been surmounted and that CBG had moved swiftly to draw down on the GH¢7.6 billion bond it was issued with and now had enough liquidity to meet customers requirements.
“The bond of GH¢7.6 billion was issued in two tranches of GH¢3.2 billion and GH¢4.4 billion.
The Central Bank, in November 2018, monetised the first tranche and we are currently in talks with third parties to securitise the second tranche of bond by June 2019,” Mr Addo assured.
Customer confidence
“Initially, customers were understandably not confident about the changes that had occurred.
But within a month when they noticed they had access to their funds with ease and maturities were being settled, their confidence increased.
“Customers now realise CBG’s importance in terms of its role to facilitate and ensure seamless transition and continuity in banking when banks had failed.
Customers are now very receptive and have confidence in CBG and the banking sector as a whole,” he added.
Integration
Asked about the status of the move to integrate the operational systems of the collapsed banks, Mr Addo said the bank had made considerable progress on the system integration while also moving to establish a technology architecture that would deliver a simple, secure and differentiated banking experience.
While on integration, he pointed out that the bank had also initiated a project to right size the branch footprint based on its Target Operating Model.
“You will see new branches opened and old ones that do not meet our rigorous standards closed. This will be phased and will be completed by the end of 2019,” he said.
Heritage, Premium banks
Mr Addo pointed out that the assumption of Heritage and Premium banks had not negatively impacted CBG, rather, it had increased the balance sheet size of the bank, which allowed it to become one of the biggest in the country.